Run for a diabetes free future.

Join Go Natural 2012 and run for a diabetes free future. 

Live Healthy, Go Natural.  

Start the year 2012 right with Runrio’s Go Natural 

on 

January 15, 2012 

at the 

Bonifacio Global City.  

Run for the education about Diabetes at an early age. 

Proceeds from the event will be donated to ABS CBN’s Ako ang Simula. 

RACE CATEGORIES

3K/5K/10K/21K

REGISTRATION FEES*

3K – PHP 350

5K – PHP 550

10K – PHP 650

21K – PHp 800

*Includes Bib with Timing Tag and Singlet (21K + Finisher’s Shirt)

REGISTRATION PROMOS

- First 1,000 early bird registrants get a special Go Natural Baller ID. 

Special surprises await those who wear the Baller ID during the run.

- Register 4 + 1 race kit for free for any category (in-store only)

- Donate P150 on top of the registration fee in support of early child diabetes education gets a freebie T-Shirt. (pickup race day)

REGISTRATION VENUES

November 28, 2011 to January 8, 2012 (12:00 nn – 8:00 pm)

- Toby’s – Shangri-La Mall and SM MOA
- Planet Sports – Trinoma and Glorietta 3
- Riovana – Bonifacio High Street
- Athlete’s Foot – Robinson’s Galleria and Alabang Town Center

To register online visit http://www.runrio.com

For More Information visit:
Official Website -> http://www.gonatural.com.ph/gonaturalrun
RunRio Website -> http://runrio.com

Go Natural is brought to you by Ampalaya Plus,  Amapalaya Plus Delite Herbal Tea, Slenda, Enduranz, Renalin, Resorts World,  Powerade and Viva Mineralized Water. 


GO NATURAL 2012 is also sponsored by Resorts World.  

Sun after the Rain (RU3 and NB Power Run Recap)

NB Power Run - Photo courtesy of Jun and Anna (The Meekrunner)

The New Balance Power Run last Nov. 6, 2011 was a wet and wild experience of running under the rain. Swthrt and I had second thought of running when we woke up that early rainy morning, but the urge to race prevailed. We prepared ourselves for a cold and wet run as we trooped to Bonifacio Global City for the 25K category we were registered in. It’s been long since we ran under heavy rains. It was a great race for Team JRunning except for the few blisters on our feet and the challenging run on flooded area near the office of the Department of Energy. It was like running on an adventure trail run for most of the participants. We finished:

Rank Bib #   Name                     Gun Time      Chip Time

962   1604    Josephine Estrella    03:22:54        03:22:20

963   1605    Joseph Estrella        03:22:54         03:22:19



RU3 - Photo courtesy of Jun and Anna (The Meekrunner)



The Run United 3 Race at Mall of Asia was a different story. The weather was exactly the opposite. It was hot from start to finish. Having registered for the Afroman distance (a dub named for the 32K category), we woke up as early as 2am to make sure we arrive at the venue early enough to have a warm up run. We started slow and steadily keeping pace with a group of 4 runners from MOA all the way to Buendia. They certainly helped us hold our pace and reserved our energy for the latter part of the course. As we took a U turn at Buendia, we started to increase our pace. The heat of the sun was almost unbearable as we reached Roxas Blvd. but we still managed to move on. My initial calculation at this point was we could break our last year’s record of 4:26:00 but an incident prevented it. It was a red letter day for Swthrt and any lady runner could attest how hard and uncomfortable it is to run having the monthly period. The long distance and the scorching heat of the sun added up to the uncomfortable feeling. We had to make a pit stop at the Petron Station at the corner of EDSA and Macapagal Avenue. The final 2K was the longest as we continued on and had to walk the most part of it. The finish line arch was a sight to behold as we ran the last 500m to the finish. It was still a great run despite Swthrt’s predicament. Our time was 4:36:+.

RU3 Race result:

Rank    Bib #     Name                        Gun Time           Chip Time

1631     39824    Josephine Estrella      04:37:01              04:36:13


1632    39825     Joseph Estrella          04:37:02              04:36:12

How you look at the hills

For most runners, the hills post the greatest challenge during races. Technically, a hill is a slope or gradient in a road that commonly intimidates runners. It may vary in form from a long and gradual incline to a short but steep ramp. Running hills could be tough and may require great power and strength in legs and core muscles. This can be achieved by having constant practice in running hills and an extra core and leg training exercises.

But do we really have to fear running on hills? For some runners, running on hills can be fun, for other races or tribes it is a way of life. For the thrill seekers, hills gave the adrenaline rush needed, thus inventing sky running (race to the top of a mountain) among others, as an adventure or extreme sports. We don’t need to fear on the hills. It’s just how we look at it.

In life, we are also faced with many hills. It could be a long and lingering ailment or an unresolved problem or it could be a short but painful experiences. These things we cannot avoid in life but we can be strong in conquering it. Like a runner who constantly practice running on hills, dealing with our problems and not avoiding it will give us strength emotionally in handling those difficulties in life. We become a stronger person after each victory. Problems in life need not be feared. It’s only how we look at it that makes it difficult.

Seeing our problems or difficulties as an opportunity to see God’s power and His great love for us can make any problem insignificant. Like a good coach, God allowed us to have problems to strengthen our faith in Him. Let us look back at those victories we have in conquering our hills in life together with Jesus and be confident that there are no greater hills that we cannot overcome if we get our strength from Him. God bless us all!

16 years ago...

May the Lord continue to bless and protect our marriage.

Need a coach?

During my early days in running, I got the privilege of training with Team Baldrunner and its elite team of coaches at the ULTRA. It was when more and more people are getting serious into running not only for physical fitness but also as a sport. Running clinics and group trainings was a common event then. Other runners would even have their own personal coaches to further improve their performances in running. A coach plays an important role in an athlete’s quest of being the best in their chosen sport. A coach guides its athlete in every step of the way, teaching them the basics to a more advanced techniques. He designed training schedules that would bring his athlete to his/her peak condition on game time. He even asked his athlete to do drills that sometimes seemed irrelevant to the sport but later would proved to be beneficial for the athlete. A coach can only be able to do these things because he himself had done it. He had been through all these and had become victorious.  All these things we follow because we believe that our coach knows what he is doing. Others even followed without asking the rationale behind doing those drills during training. All these we do because we have full trust and confidence to our coaches.

In the race called life, we can also have one true coach and his name is Jesus. Jesus had live among us. He experienced what we are experiencing right now. Jesus had been showing us the way to be victorious in every trial or problems we have in life but have we listened to Him? Have we put our full trust and confidence in Him that we fully obey Him and be victorious in every trials and difficulties we have in this world? Or you have yourself or others to follow? Why don’t you try Jesus. He can be your life’s coach! God bless us all!

Photos Talk - Team JRunning's coming races

Two races for Team JRunning, Hope to see you out there! Keep on running!

2011 Macau International Marathon

It is every runner’s dream to have a different experience in running races thus most of them join races not only in various cities and provinces in the country but also abroad.  Another venue which Filipino runners would certainly have a different running thrill is the 2011 Macau International Marathon. 

The Macau Government Tourism Office in Manila in collaboration with Runrio Inc. hosted a bloggers night last October 20, 2011 to launch the 30^th edition of the Macau International Marathon dubbed as the Macau Galaxy Entertainment International Marathon to be held on o4 December 2011. Big prizes for different categories will be at stake plus  bonus prize for record breakers will be awarded. Macau will not only play host to this grand sporting event but is also a great place to tour and shop around. The place is also a haven for shoppers. Runners will certainly have a great time enjoying the many UNESCO declared heritage sites of the People's Republic of China’s Special Administrative Region, Macau.

So what are you waiting for? If you have the means, register now for the Macau International Marathon this December!

Event Title: 2011 Macau Galaxy Entertainment International Marathon

Date: 4^th December 2011 (Sunday)

Organizers: Macau Sport Development Board、Macau Athletic Association

Aim: To develop local sports, by raising the level of running, to strengthen the friendship between people from different parts of the world, contribute to the promotion of sport tourism in Macau.

Qualification for registration: Citizen holding a legal identification document can register without discrimination of nationality.

Registration Schedules :

In Person or through a representative (Until 3^rd Dec. 2011, 8:00pm)

By Post (Until 18^th Nov. 2011, 5:30pm)

Online Registration (Until 25^th Nov. 2011, 11:30pm)

For more information visit:

http://www.macaumarathon.com/en/event_register.php

http://www.macaumarathon.com/en/event_info.php

KOTR behind the lens

JRunning had a different experience in the recently concluded King of the Road 2011 held last October 24, 2011 at  Bonifacio Global City. After we brought our son Josh at NAMRIA compound for his tennis session, Swthrt and I ran going to BHS to witness the most awaited Adidas King of the Road Challenge. We took photos of friends and other runners as they approached the finish line. We spent more than an hour taking those photos and having chats with some friends. Afterwards, we ran back to NAMRIA compound and picked up Josh and his coach and call it a day.

To view on the photos please visit and like Team JRunning page on Facebook. Hope you’ll enjoy it!

Keep on running!

Team JRunning weekend run

One thing I like about weekend is that I get to spend more time with Swthrt and the kids. Swthrt and I always look forward to activities we will have on weekend and running will always be on the list. Last Saturday,October 15 2011, it was the whole family that went to UPD. Swthrt and I were scheduled to run at least 10K at an easy pace. JM, our eldest son, had to do an experiment for their myth busting project in Biology class together with his classmates. While Josh, our youngest son, does not want to miss the fun came with us.

11K easy pace Saturday run

We arrived at UPD a little late. It was almost 7 am when we started to run. To keep us motivated, we tried to look at the situation as an opportunity to also have some sort of heat training. We normally are still running by this time if we run in a half or full marathon. We usually start our run in front of the Abelardo Hall and do stretching at the parking space in front of Palma Hall before completing our goal for the day. JM and Josh joined us in our first round of the oval and eventually wait for JM’s classmates near the Sunken Garden. As always, it was difficult at the start before finally picking up on a rhythm for our run. Swthrt tried again using an ipod while running. She has been used to running without it for quite a long time. It seemed to work well with her as she was able to keep a consistent pace as she went along with the beat of the music.

After finishing our goal (we were able to do 5 rounds of the Academic Oval which is equal to 11K which is more than our goal), we went to JM who was already with his classmates discussing on how they would go about with their experiment.

Afterwards, we went to Kiss Restaurant at the Bahay ng Alumni building for breakfast before getting on a full day of activities.

5K easy run and speed works

For our Sunday run, October 16, 2011, we went to NAMRIA in Fort Bonifacio at 5:30 am and got caught in traffic as a race was on-going along Bayani Road and Lawton Avenue. After getting through the traffic and have brought Josh at NAMRIA compund where he would have a tennis training with his coach Swthrt and I went for a 5K run along Bayani Road. When we returned to NAMRIA compound we did speed intervals and hill repeats. One good thing about our office compound is that it has a good terrain ideal for different types of training. One loop of the compound is approximately 250m. The road from the main gate going to the back of the compound was down hill ideal for hill repeats. We also have courts for basketball, volleyball and tennis.

 

 

JRunning solo @ BHS

Last night, I had a chance to run at BHS while waiting for Swthrt to finish her work. It was not that easy especially at the start. There was a strong temptation to stay at the Customer Lounge of Honda and just  watch TV. It’s  great to sit back and relax since Josh and I just have a hearty meal at Market Market where I also bought myself a guitar tuner. Josh was also pleading me to go with him at BHS Timezone. The only saving grace which push me to run was the constant greetings of the security guards at Honda who knew that Swthrt and I run regularly, “Good evening sir, di ka ba tatakbo?” Isn’t  that a great way to remind me that I have to run. Swthrt also knew that I was going to run, so at around 6:45 pm I got myself ready. It’s always been hard for me to start a run. I need some time for my body to warm up and adjust to the stress brought about by running. I also prefer an early morning run rather than a night run. It’s been a long time since I ran around BHS. The number of runners have increased dramatically since then. There was also a running clinic by Milo Apex being held last night and I also noticed a group of runners assembled near ROX probably getting ready for a group run. After running a couple of rounds, I was missing my running mate Swthrt who really wanted to run but was tied with work. It’s a boring run without her. We have been used to running together in races and in trainings that we enjoy every minute of it. It was a great bonding moment for us. We talk anything and everything. Anyway, we are looking forward to our long run this Saturday.  I finished my run after 5 rounds at the BHS and returned back to Honda.

How about you? What do you prefer, an early morning or a night run? Do you like to run alone or with a partner or group?

Keep on running runners!

Have a great run or race this weekend!

Pointing unto Him again

"Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us." -Hebrews 12:1

These verses were in the first post of this blog way back in July 29, 2008. This blog was originally intended to keep a journal of my running experiences. But even from the start, I would like to share God’s word as a source of inspiration, encouragement and strength in this race called life. Soon thereafter, God open doors to channel His blessings to others, thus God’s words and spiritual insights impressed upon me, have been a common post in this blog. Commenters and other runners/bloggers have been blessed by His word. Now that I’m taking a look back of my past posts, I have noticed a decrease in sharing Jesus Christ in this blog. I have been reminded of the calling of this site. I may have come a long way in blogging, conquered several marathon races, set new Personal Records in running, but have let down God’s interest in this blog then I failed. And so keep us running with endurance the race God has set before us, I pray to God that I would again be sensitive in hearing His voice and be strengthened by it, nourished by it that I may be able to share His love and be a channel blessing once again through this blog.

God bless us all!

Bringing back the old times

One way of pushing a runner to train is to set a certain goal. And one of the better ways to have it is to register in a race and have targets, like breaking a PR, just finish the race, or simply using the race as preparation to a more challenging race like doing a full marathon. Having all this in mind, Team JRunning registered for the 25K category in the New Balance Power Run which will be held on Nov. 6, 2011 and the 32K Run United 3 which will be held on Nov. 13, 2011. This action will hopefully push us harder in training. It has been hard for us to train lately because my mother got so sick early this year and passed away last August (this story deserves another post). I’m not blaming it on her. We love Nanay so much that we were willing to let go of training schedules to take care of her. Though we lacked training then during weekdays, we managed to join a number of major races to maintain our fitness level. Last September, we tried to beep up training but because of series of tropical storms we were up again to weight gains and not on weight trainings, he he he. Our youngest son Josh also got interested on tennis that we have him trained every Sunday mornings. Recently, Swthrt and I have been busy at work too. I can go on and on making excuses but then again it won’t help us any in our desire to finish the year with another marathon race which is the QCIM. And to do my share in bringing back the way it used to be in blogging about running, I will post or log our trainings whether it will be a short run or a real long run.  To start on, here’s our run last weekend.

Back at UPD last Saturday

It was good to be back in training at UPD Academic Oval last Saturday. It’s been a long time since we ran at UP. We missed the smell of the trees, the sound of the carillon bells, and the sight of runners doing their thing around the campus. It was also nice to see familiar faces still running at the campus. We tried to keep a slow steady pace covering 5 loops of the AO after which we went to COOP store for a fruit shake treat.  

7K Sunday run

There was drizzle on our side of the metro last Sunday morning. It was a perfect bed weather day. As a matter of fact, we were late in waking up for Josh’s 5:30am tennis training. After a cup of coffee to perk me up (Swthrt is still not allowed to have coffee because of GURD) 

and Josh’s training all set at the clubhouse, we had a good 7K run around our place. It was a blessing from God that He brought us to our new home where we can run safely around the village. We have a usual route which measures 1.8K approximately. 

Last Sunday we were able to run a little faster covering 3 loops plus a few more distance to complete the 7K run. It was a good run even though we still have walk breaks (can’t help it, he he he) along the way.

MH Urbanathlon for Urbanathletes

Men’s Health Philippines brings back its one-of-a-kind competition, the Men’s Health signature event, the MH URBANATHLON which combines traditional road race elements and rigorous obstacles that will challenge participants to greater level. This will be held on November 13, 2011 at the Bonifacio Global City (behind NBC Tent). The event will have 5K, 10K, and 15K categories mixed with obstacles such as HURDLES, MONKEY BARS, SCAFFOLDING MAZE, LOW CRAWL, and WALL.  Designed with utmost safety, these obstacles were also positioned strategically to minimize, if not totally prevent clogging of participants. Additional time as penalties will be given to MH urbanathletes who would avoid or would not complete the given obstacle/s.

Photos during the  MH Urbanathlon 2011 - Bloggers night   

After the race, the excitement continues at the Men’s Health URBANATHLON Festival, with DJ sets, foods and drinks, and tons of stuff from the event’s co- sponsors to demo, sample or even bring home.


This year’s URBANATHLON promises to be a bigger, tougher, and more demanding with expected number of participants reaching 1,700. For more race details, please visit http://menshealthph.com/.

Run after dark the Adobo Magazine Run way

Run after dark for a different running experience at Adobo Magazine’s  Adobo Run 2011. It promises an evening of fun, fun, fun and party all night long. A press and bloggers night was held last September 30, 2011 at R.O.X., Bonifacio High Street in Taguig City. Crush Communications, the event’s organizer, headed by Mr. Rod Nepomuceno and Mr. Edward Kho discussed the event’s new and exciting concept of the run. 

Edward Kho asking a question to Running Diva, Rocelle
during one of the event's game.

Another question for Banjo

Illac Diaz and Rod Nepomuceno giving the next questions

It will be a fantasy-themed run for an estimated 5,000 runners in 3 categories, the 3K Costume Run, 5K and 15K. The event will be held on 29 October 2011 at Aseana Business Park, Bay City, Pasay-Paranaque (near MOA). The 3 race categories will be released in separate waves, ensuring that most runners will finish before the succeeding category is fired off. Runners will enjoy their run on a vehicle-free road as they will have the exclusive use of the Aseana Business Park property.

Gunstart        3K - 8:00pm

                        5K - 8:20pm

                        15K - 9:00pm

Registration fee: P750 (all categories)

Registration Period:  Manual registration – Oct. 3 to 23, 2011

                                    Runnr Trinoma, Tobyʼs EDSA Shangri-La Mall,

                                    R.O.X. Bonifacio High Street

                                   

                                    On-line registration – Sep 1 to Oct 23, 2011

                                    (delivery of race kits starts on Oct 3, 2011)

                                    www.adoborun.runningmate.ph

Janelle Barretto-Squires, Vice President and COO of Adobo Magazine
thanking the media and bloggers.

Race Registration Inclusions: Race singlet, Runningmate Timing Chip, Bib Number, Finisher’s Certificate, Loot Bag, Party Stub, Finisher’s Medal (for top 500 15k & 5k runners,
respectively)

For more details: log on to www.adobomagazine.com/adoborun

email adoborun@yahoo.com

contact 0905-3861076

There will be an after-run party with live music, free flowing beer, a sideline bazaar, spectacular performers (samba percussionists, poi dancers, fire breathers, carnival queens), fireworks display, dazzling lights show, and fantasy costumes.

The Isang Litrong Liwanag Project of the My Shelter Foundation with Mr. Illac Diaz, the Executive Director, will be the beneficiary of the Adobo Run 2011.

Mr.Illac Diaz of My Shelter Foundation

Isang Litrong Liwanag aims in  spreading across the Philippines and the world, lighting up thousands of homes with a simple formula; used plastic soda bottles, water, bleach and pure Filipino ingenuity. 

For more details on the project visit (www.isanglitrongliwanag.org), (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vf9EaS7utqo and  http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-14967535)